Small business would be damaged under the Kyoto protocol

If Andrew Craig speaks for Commerce
Queensland (Courier Mail, Perspectives, 10/07/02), then Commerce
Queensland is out of contact with the interests of Australian business,
especially small business. Commerce Queensland, as Queensland's peak
employer body, should be protecting business. Instead, they demonstrate
once again that at the first sign of a threat they run up the white
flag.

We know that Kyoto protocols are based on shaky science. Many
reputable scientists assert that the world's temperature moves in
cycles, and that the influence of human activity on those cycles is
barely perceptible.

According to The Wall Street Journal of 11 June 2001, more
than17,000 US scientists, among them Richard Lindzen of the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, who worked on studies on climate
change by both the National Research Council and United Nations, have
expressed serious doubts about the link between global warming and
man-made carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels.

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James K Glassman and Sallie Baliunas wrote in The Weekly Standard
of 25 June 2001 that highly-accurate, carefully-documented NASA
satellite and balloon monitoring have shown no warming of the
troposphere in over 25 years.

Tom Randall of the National Center for Public Policy Research (June
2002) acknowledges that in the past century there has been a rise in
surface temperatures of about half a degree Fahrenheit. "Most of
this occurred prior to 1940, followed by slight cooling from 1940 to
1975 and some slight warming from 1975 until now - definitely not a
pattern consistent with climate change caused by increasing amounts of
carbon dioxide in the air".

If the world is getting warmer, then there is no certainty that this
is a bad thing. We certainly know that when it last got really cold in
the 12th century that the effect on human habitation, particularly in
Greenland was devastating.

There exists a coterie of international bureaucrats who have a vested
interest in frightening nations into signing up to a regime which is
intended to increase the powers of international bureaucrats, undermine
national sovereignty and jack up the costs of doing business. Every
Queensland business which depends on energy inputs has its viability
threatened by the Kyoto Protocol. A reduction in greenhouse emissions
translates to rising energy prices, which would mean greater cost for
already struggling small businesses.

There is no substance to Andrew Craig's claim that Australian
business might suffer if the Australian Government does not ratify the
Kyoto Protocol but there is an absolute guarantee that every Australian
small business, which either depends on energy inputs or relies on other
businesses which do, will be worse off if we are stupid enough to ratify
it.

In contributing handsomely to feeding and clothing the world,
Australia produces crops which require heavy consumption of fuel for
ploughing, planting, harvesting and transportation, and also fertiliser
which consumes energy. Australian primary producers and small businesses
already have quite enough bureaucrats ordering them around and impeding
their productivity.

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The Small Business Union, which now competes directly with Commerce
Queensland to provide services to other small business employer
associations and professional groups, is all about protecting Queensland
small business from adverse influences, wherever they may be.

Andrew Craig bleats: "Our environmental and renewable energy
industries clearly will suffer if excluded from the international
scene." Compared to Queensland's mighty coal industry, solar energy
is a toy, and, moreover a very expensive toy. Even in draughty Denmark,
much-touted wind energy is still unprofitable, according to Herbert
Inhabler (TechCentralStation of 11 July 2002), who points out
that Denmark remains heavily dependent on coal.

The United States of America has no doubts about the Kyoto Protocol,
the U.S. Senate having voted 95-0 on July 25, 1997 to reject any treaty
that would harm the American economy or fail to require developing
nations to reduce emissions. Australia would be very wise to align
itself with the USA on this vitally important issue.

If Commerce Queensland believes Australia should seek compliance with
Kyoto, small business should ask if their interests are being
represented.